Pat

You ask such complex question. Keep it up.

The simple answer is I can not give you one that you would consider reasonable. I will also say, weighing the pros and cons I can not give you a reasonable reason to keep the original notes if you convert then into another format before destroying the original material. I just want that information preserved in some format.

I do not believe I can give one that would be acceptable because I do not believe there is a black and white answer to this question. I guess because it does not make a difference to me I have a hard time with the question. The case I cited was one of the best reasons for keeping original notes. As it turned out in the end two persons was set free by the jury because they got to compare the notes to the person’s testimony. I just feel I am an honest person and if I transcribe my notes into another format they are all still there to be examined and probably more readable.

I can say I have seen the abuse investigator have taken from attorneys using those notes in an effort to discredit the individual when the questions had nothing to do with the facts of the case. One I remember was, “If you are this messy with your notes to where they are unreadable, I guess your investigation is of the same quality.” Once than demeaning statement is made there is no recovery and it had nothing to do with the accuracy of the person’s conclusion. After this would happen to me a couple of time I would ask myself if it is not illegal to get rid of them, why not do it.

What I am seeing in the litigation with fire investigations is more personal attacks to discredit other investigators and we are not focusing on the facts of the case. Let’s face it, what most of the Daubert challenges have become is personal attacks with little to do with the facts of the case. If I can show he did not follow every section of 921 then I can say his conclusion is wrong. That is a bunch of bull in my opinion. Well, this is what I believe the big up roar over the notes is about. The more information the opposing side has, the more they can nit pick to muddy the water so they can hide the facts.

Hope this answers your question and clarifies my answer.

jim